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Sierela
Sierela, crowning the peninsula of Santella on the northern coast of the Trade Sea, is the largest city in the region. It houses a mixed population of primarily humans and tieflings, around 5,000 at its height. Its primary export is precious metals, though it does a brisk trade in bespoke smithing, artificing, and its academies of arcane and spiritual arts bring in quite a lot in tuition from citizens and foreigners alike. History Many of Sierela's buildings are over a thousand years old, having been settled by an ancient iron age human empire, which had originally flourished due to the plentiful resources of the bog it was built upon. Canals still intersect much of the city, where gatherers wade out to gather lumps of iron and, when the bodies of powerful chimera have been left to decompose within them, magical ores. In more recent centuries, Tieflings from lands beyond came to settle in Sierela. They brought with them a good deal of wealth, arcane knowledge, and culture if, not a mesh for the existing city society, created a contrast that is the modern city's signature, the ornate spires and edifices of their architecture standing next to the time-tested stoneworks of the original empire. It is not unusual to find a mosque to one of the more exotic deities right next to a more conservative human chapel. Administration Originally, the city was ran by a Praefectus of the Caesar's appointment. Since the Empire's collapse, the trade guilds and noble houses have taken over, appointing a Patrician to oversee taxation and civil works. The city's defense force employs an elaborate system of protective wards and golemancy, and thus any who take the throne are expected to have a basic familiarity with magic. The primary job qualification, however, is the guile to deal with the politics of the noble houses, and their petty jihads. The current Patrician is named Duso, the former Dean of the Sierela Grand Academy of Wizardry. Noble Houses 'Marillo' One of the oldest families, having a lineage that claims descent from prefects, kings, and saints. They are in the annals of many of the city's churches as founders, having built many churches in lieu of allowing their children to be conscripts of holy wars. Many Marillos are deacons, cardinals, magi, and other priests of note. They are an expressedly human only family, and fraternization with tieflings, even noble ones, is anathema. 'Vollbracht' A family of mixed lineages, Vollbrachts are bred at the whims of each individual son or daughter, choosing spouses of desired physical traits like long, symmetrical horn, large ears, long noses, and beautiful cheekbones, and/or for intrinsic magical talent. Seeing beauty as more important than racial purity, they have many human and tiefling members, and are a famous avenue for "marrying up" in society, as they are allowed to court commoners of interesting feature. They maintain their respect in high society, however, due to the amount of powerful magic users this churns out. 'Mortim' The Mortim are said to have been part of the vandal tribes responsible for the downfall of the original Empire in the first place, sacking the cities whenever any sort of internal strife occured, and constructing checkpoints that harried the movement of supplies to battles abroad. Whatever their history, they do not speak lightly of it with outsiders, though the grim motifs on their houses do nothing to quell rumors. Power is their only ambition, and they lack the subtlety to find it through means other than the sword. They are primarily tiefling, though it is not unknown for them to marry a less attractive daughter off to a human who has impressed them. 'Rincorda' A matrilineal house, the women of Rincorda are some of the city’s most influential and famous. They are the most generous patrons of the arts in Sierela, and most established tailors have them to thank, as they frequently require new, more elaborate garments for their numerous balls and functions. Although they have never sought a Matriarch in the city’s throne in place of a Patrician, it is said that they have been the deciding factor in the appointment of every ruler in recent history, in approaches that vary from subtle games of politics, to bankrolling the assassination of all opposition. A mostly human family, though they occasionally favor male suitors from the Vollbracht or Mortim houses. Notable Locations 'The Grand Palace' Once the seat of the Praefectus, this is one of the oldest buildings in Sierela. It has been rebuilt over the centuries, integrating new theories of architecture and design, and secret arcane facilities for the modern Patricians. 'The Tower of Wizardry' The oldest building in record, it was once occupied by powerful magic users who had moved in to refine their arts in isolation, and hunt chimera in the nearby marshes. When the empire expanded their direction, they grudgingly provided the protection required tto construct the Grand Palace, and other civic structures. It has since been abandoned, and is maintained by a small crew of historians. 'The Golem Works' Originally just a loam pit that was sifted for materials to construct fine glass, it was later covered up by the expanding noble population, who found it unsightly, dumping landfill within it until they could pave if over. Later, a manticore attack broke the street open again, revealing a thick deposit of clay that had shifted in. Some of the more opportunistic artificers had an epiphany from this serendipitous chain of events, building a factory upon the site, and using it to bolster the lackluster city watch, who had let the manticore get in to begin with. 'Castillo Suecia' One of the original barracks of the founding Empire, Suecia is now the city's most prominent inn for travellers. Bunks serve as accomodations for thrifty adventurers and itinerant workers, while officer's quarters are now room for the more well-to-do. The round keep had been hewn from a large outcrop of volcanic stone, and has a network of mine shafts that were worked by the Empire's dwarven allies, and used to move supplies through vandal blockades. The dwarfs still occupy the keep, running its day-to-day operations, using its massive larders and mess hall to feed many of the common cityfolk as well as the sizable population of hungry mercenaries. 'The Naughty Wizard' Near the ancient tower lies this establishment. The original Naughty Wizard predates the empire, in the days where the tower's population was enough that a man could make a living serving the students and faculty drinks and meals. It has been destroyed countless times since by monsters and the explosion of stills. Even after the wizards had moved into schools in the city proper, the tavern seemed to be part of the city's morphic memory, and persisted through more monster attacks and barbarian razings. The current incarnation was built by a Vollbracht investor, who has built it into a fine dining establishment patronized by the city's nobles and intellects. It is also a quite useful rumor mill for the enterprising adventurer. It is ran by Hubert Vollbracht, a jovial, portly human with an infamous pair of tiny, vestigial demon horns on his temples, who makes it his business to know everyone who comes in, even the commoners splurging on a rare fancy meal. The Undercity A poor district of Sierela, accessible near the seaport. It had tunnels that extend much deeper than the quiet, civil streets of the entrance imply. Category:settlements